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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29082429">The Ice Dragon and the Winter Fox</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/ageless_aislynn/pseuds/ageless_aislynn'>ageless_aislynn</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Snowells Kisses prompts [22]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>The Flash (TV 2014)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>F/M</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-02-07</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-02-23</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-13 11:01:02</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>5,421</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/29082429</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/ageless_aislynn/pseuds/ageless_aislynn</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Prompt by BrokenBookAddict<br/><a href="https://ageless-aislynn.tumblr.com/post/622436673140244480/types-of-kisses-prompts">Snowells Kisses prompt</a> 36 - <i>A kiss paired with a tight hug, knocking the breath out of the person being hugged.</i></p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Killer Frost/Earth-19 Harrison "HR" Wells</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Snowells Kisses prompts [22]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1813312</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>29</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>14</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><ul class="associations">
      <li>For <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/users/BrokenBookAddict/gifts">BrokenBookAddict</a>.</li>



    </ul><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Once upon a time - because that's the way all stories really should start, don't let anybody tell you differently - there was an Ice Dragon who lived high upon a remote mountain range...</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>This one has been in progress for a longgg while. All chapters are written but are going through final editing. Chapter 2 will be here soon(-ish). ;)</p><p>I'm super at the mercy of my muse right now, sorry to say, and she's flittering from one project to another. :S But I've decided to just go with it because I came <i>perilously</i> close to blocking when I tried to force myself to finish one thing at a time. Hope it's not annoying but at least this way I'm continuing to work on <i>something</i> at all times. I promise, everything in progress WILL be concluded. ;)</p><p>[Update: In case you've noticed, the original plan for 5 chapters has been lowered to 4 over the course of editing. ;) I decided it just flows better as 4 longer chapters than 5 shorter ones. Chapter 2 should be ready in the next few days! (Feb 15, 2021)]</p><p>If you read, I hope you enjoy! ♥♥♥</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <i> Once upon a time – because that’s the way all stories really should start, don’t let anybody tell you differently – there was an Ice Dragon who lived high upon a remote mountain range. All of the creatures who lived in the lands below her called her fearsome and terrible and dangerous and other words that we shan’t repeat here. They spoke of her fury, of the icy blast of her breath that could freeze a living being solid just for displeasing her, of her pride and her quick temper. But the Winter Fox looked up at her sitting alone atop the highest peak of her mountains, gleaming like a star having fallen to earth, and he saw only her beauty. And her sadness.</i>
</p><p>***</p><p>"I remember when Caitlin used to bring the Big Belly Burgers down here," Killer Frost muttered, taking the bag of food from the pass-through into her cell. "Except she was on that side of the door and the evil guy who looked like you was on <i>this</i> side."</p><p>H.R. smiled broadly, like she'd just revealed the most fascinating thing he'd ever heard of. "Yeah, crazy, isn't it? You were good and Thawne was evil and now here <i>I'm</i> good and <i>you're</i> evil!" His smile suddenly faltered. "Oh, guess I shouldn't call you evil, sorry."</p><p>She shrugged, unwrapping her burger. "Nah, it's all right. I'm evil," she said and took a healthy bite with an appreciative noise.</p><p>"Burgers are always good, though," he said, giving a twirl of his ever-present drumsticks.</p><p>"Burgers are good," she agreed, rooting around in the bag to pull out the fries. "Hey, there's no ketchup."</p><p>"What? Oh, no. No, no. That's unacceptable!" he said, sounding genuinely distressed. He held up a finger. "Wait right here, I'll get you some."</p><p>"Where'm I goin' to go?" she said rhetorically around another mouthful as he hurried away. She didn't expect to see him until dinner - or breakfast if no one was as conscientious as Caitlin had been when she'd been in charge of bringing food down to the inhabitants of the Pipeline.</p><p>But she was still working her way through the burger and fries when he returned, carrying a bottle of ketchup and something in a Big Belly Burger cup with a lid and a thick straw. She already had a soda, so when the items came through, she popped the lid with a speculative look.</p><p>"Everybody likes chocolate shakes, right?" he said, sounding hopeful.</p><p>"Sure," she drawled, "but you didn't have time to go buy a shake."</p><p>"Nah, it was mine. Haven't had even a little sip of it, though, Scout's honor!" He gave her the weird Earth-19 version of a Boy Scout salute. "Thought it would make up for missing the ketchup the first time around. Oh and it's frosty so, like… Killer Frosty!"</p><p>She stared at him for a moment, then decided the pun wasn't <i>quite</i> bad enough to threaten to murder him. She almost told him to keep the shake for himself but that was just the ghost of Caitlin Snow trying to rear her polite little head.</p><p>So she took a defiant sip, big enough that if she hadn't had her particular meta abilities, she would've definitely gotten brain freeze. "Thanks," she said brusquely and he beamed at her as if she'd just plied him with a mountain of compliments.</p><p>Too late, she realized thanking him was allowing Caitlin to rear her polite little head anyway.</p><p>***</p><p>Barry always brought breakfast and started her day off on a sour note. It was nothing he said; in fact, he said nothing at all. But the sad look in his eyes spoke volumes. She convinced herself that the pained feeling in her chest was anger.</p><p>Cisco brought her dinners after H.R. handled the lunch duties and it was like having her day end by being doused in gasoline. Cisco would speak only in short, clipped sentences but as angry as his words sounded, his expression was as solemn as if he were at a funeral. Again, she made it clear in her own mind that it was <i>righteous fury</i> that made her throat feel tight. She didn't care, not <i>at all</i>, that her former close friends could hardly stand to look her in the eye.</p><p>Only H.R. seemed unfazed. </p><p>The next day, he brought her lunch in a bigger BBB bag, and immediately left, whistling some tune she almost recognized but was slightly off enough to elude her. </p><p>He was still whistling that same almost-familiar song when he came back, lugging a small folding chair and table. He set it up a few feet away from the glass and gave her a brilliant smile before leaving once more. This time, he came back with a bag of food for himself.</p><p>"I thought we'd eat together," he proclaimed, setting up his meal. "I got you another chocolate shake, by the way, but you can let me know if you'd like something different, okay? Or if you want, you know, something else. Curly fries? Bam, you got 'em! Extra pickles? Say the word, they're yours."</p><p>She arched an eyebrow while dragging half a dozen fries through the ketchup before shoving them all in her mouth at one time. "You do know that you're not supposed to be nice to the prisoners, right?" she asked when she was done chewing.</p><p>"Why not?" he asked, looking genuinely interested.</p><p>"Because… because you're just not," she said, slightly flustered. "Everybody knows that."</p><p>"Not me. I'm my own man," he said, giving a tip of his hat before taking a bite of his burger.</p><p>She shook her head but didn't argue the point further.</p><p>He ate with her the next day as well. She refused to admit that she'd hoped he would. <i>It just breaks up the monotony,</i> she assured herself.</p><p>He also brought her a bunch of paperbacks: cheesy romances, thrillers, sci-fi space operas and high fantasy. She wasn't allowed any sort of electronics, so sitting there reading the sordid exploits of brawny pirates who couldn't keep their shirts on and the women who clung to their bare chests while their dresses barely covered their own heaving bosoms kept her sane the rest of the day. </p><p>He'd also brought her copies of his own work. She had to admit, he had a flair for writing. It wasn't until she thought to wonder why the short stories were printed and snapped into a black, three-ring binder that she realized they weren't published stories. He'd written them… for her?</p><p>She honestly didn't know what to do with that information. Thanking him was a Caitlin thing again. The "evil" thing to do would be to… what? Insult the stories? But she couldn't. They were full of heart and adventure and mystery. And love. He had a definite talent for writing romances that were heart-felt but not cheesy. Well, unless they were the equivalent of rom-coms where he employed cheesiness in a skilled manner to elicit laughs.</p><p>Then the next day, he brought her a single, slim, silver binder. It seemed a paltry offering, at first, but then she looked at the stacks of paperbacks she still hadn't read yet and figured that she couldn't fault him for not having written a dozen new stories overnight.</p><p>But in this binder, there was only one story. A part of a story. It was, from the title, the first part of a serial. <i>My own Scheherazade,</i> she thought, trying for disdain but even her mental voice sounded more stunned than anything.</p><p>She purposely set the binder aside while she finished eating. He looked a little disappointed that she didn't immediately start reading, probably hoping to watch her face and gauge her reaction.</p><p><i>Too bad,</i> she thought as harshly as she could manage. <i>I'm not here to soothe his feelings.</i></p><p>But the second that he packed up his lunch, setting aside the table and chair and bidding her goodbye, she put her hand on the silver binder. The moment he vanished through the doorway, she flipped it open and began to read.</p><p>***</p><p>
  <i>At first, the Winter Fox dismissed his impulsive wish to meet the Ice Dragon. Clearly, she didn't want company or she would've come down from her isolated mountain to have a nice chat or to eat a rogue goat or whatever it was that Ice Dragons might be wont to do.</i>
</p><p>
  <i>But he couldn't help himself, something about her called to him. He wanted to meet her, to see if she was really as fearsome as the other creatures insisted that she was. So he made a plan.</i>
</p><p>
  <i>At mid-day, when the sun was high overhead, he made his way up the mountain side. It was a deceptively difficult journey, with many easy ways to misstep, but he persevered.</i>
</p><p>
  <i>At last he reached that tall peak where so often he'd seen her sitting, shining with the cold splendor of a thousand facets of ice, but she was nowhere to be found. The wind howled, a haunting lament. He</i> thought <i>he saw a shadow on the sun, a dragon in flight so high above him that she was but a mote. He sat there as long as he could, as his fur began to thicken with frost, until the sun could no longer warm his bones, no matter how he clung to its waning radiance. He traveled back down the mountain, dejected.</i>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chapter 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>The Winter Fox decided that this situation called for his most magical power, something that many people possessed but few had in adequate amount to actually achieve their goal: persistence.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>This has been a rough week and so to try and give myself a little mental vacation from RL, I've been focusing extra hard on finishing my WIPs. Chapters 3 and 4 of this one are completed and will be posted (barring, you know, disasters etc. ;) ) Monday and Tuesday. </p><p>If you read, I hope you enjoy. ♥♥♥</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <i>The Winter Fox decided that this situation called for his most magical power, something that many people possessed but few had in adequate amount to actually achieve their goal: persistence.</i>
</p><p>
  <i>Day after day, he climbed the mountain, sitting in the sun until the cold finally drove him back down to warmer climates.</i>
</p><p>
  <i>Once, he arrived earlier than usual and caught the Dragon sitting atop the highest peak, gleaming in the sunlight as he used to often see her from far below.</i>
</p><p>
  <i>"Milady Dragon!" he cried. "At last, we meet! I've come so far to speak with you and--"</i>
</p><p>
  <i>She gave him a glance from the corner of her pale blue eyes. "Then you've come a long way for nothing," she said, her voice an angelic chorus of cherubs while the contempt in her tone could've frightened the blackest of hellhounds into tucking its tail and fleeing.</i>
</p><p>
  <i>She extended her wings and they shone as if made of multifaceted glass, momentarily blinding him. With a hard downstroke, she took to the air, the rush of wind sending him tumbling.</i>
</p><p>
  <i>When he righted himself, she wasn't even a speck in the sky. Anyone who might have seen him then could've been excused for thinking that he was distressed as he trotted back down the mountain. But they wouldn't have known that he was concealing a small but definite fox smile.</i>
</p><p>
  <i>She had spoken to him.</i>
</p><p>***</p><p>It was, of course, no great stretch to figure out H.R.'s inspiration. Frost actually should've been angry or insulted but she liked what she'd seen of the irascible Ice Dragon, recognizing a kindred spirit. She would never have admitted that she also couldn't help but root for the likeable, determined Winter Fox.</p><p>She read those installments over and over, more than any of his other stories, and soon he was bringing her longer chapters and foregoing anything else. </p><p>She wondered sometimes if he ever watched her read through the monitors just to gauge her unfiltered reaction. But she was pretty good at keeping a poker face, even when internally she was laughing, sighing or smiling at the Fox's antics.</p><p>She kept the nice little stack of notebooks next to the pull-out bed, where she often read them over in the night if she couldn't sleep.</p><p>H.R. didn't mention that fact that she never returned those particular stories but, more than once, she'd caught him looking at that pile of notebooks and he'd smile.</p><p>He really did have a nice smile.</p><p>***</p><p>She looked up, hearing footsteps, but was surprised when a dark haired man she didn't know came through the door. There was something hazy shrouding him, a faint, barely perceptible mist and, as she squinted, trying to see through it, it abruptly parted.</p><p>"What is this, Halloween, H.R.?" she asked, arching her eyebrow at him. "Who are you supposed to be?"</p><p>He paused, clearly startled, then pointed something that looked like a thin flashlight up under his chin. The illusion popped like a bubble.</p><p>"No way!" he said enthusiastically. "You could see through the facial transmogrification device? So cool! No pun intended. Well, maybe a little pun intended."</p><p>"Transfacial-whatication?"</p><p>He wiggled his fingers through the air. "It's light refraction technology! I, er, think. It's something like that anyway. Now, I didn't know your feelings about a bacon burger but they were having a special so I thought, why not?"</p><p>"Did you bring me curly fries and a chocolate shake?" she asked, trying not to sound too eager.</p><p>He held up the BBB bag. "I did. So, you in for the bacon burger?"</p><p>"I'm in," she said and he beamed at her. She had to bite the inside of her mouth to keep from giving him a matching smile.</p><p>It was becoming a little more difficult to keep a neutral façade around him, no matter how hard she tried.</p><p>***</p><p>There was something wrong. She could feel it, as if the soft, barely perceptible hum of energy from S.T.A.R. Labs far above her was full of discord and static. But the biggest worry was when H.R. failed to bring her lunch at the right time. </p><p>He arrived a couple hours later, bearing a plate with a sandwich, a small bag of chips, and a can of soda along with an apologetic expression. "So sorry I'm late and the fare's not exactly up to usual standards," he said. "Things are…busy."</p><p>She made a noncommittal noise, accepting the food through the pass-through.</p><p>"I'll be back later, hopefully with something more exciting," he said, turning back the way he'd come.</p><p>"Wait, you're leaving?" The words blurted out before she could stop them. To cover, she shoved the sandwich in her mouth and took a too-large bite. Bologna with cheese and mustard on rye bread, a gourmet feast to her growling stomach.</p><p>"Wish I had time to eat with you," he said and his regret felt sincere. "I had to just sorta cram my sandwich down while I was making yours. Busy, like I said."</p><p><i>You made my sandwich?</i> She managed, just in time, to clamp her lips shut over the words. Well, of course he'd probably made the sandwich. Who else would have? But there was something about knowing that he had gone to the effort when he could've just found some pre-packaged vending machine sandwich somewhere with an expiration date not even in this century. </p><p>"Okay," she said and he gave a slightly weary tip of his hat and spun on his heel to leave.</p><p>She intended to just watch him go. She really did. But this time her traitorous tongue eluded her control.</p><p>"Hey, H.R.?" she called and he paused, looking back expectantly. "Be careful. Whatever's going on, just… be careful."</p><p>The smile that slowly transformed his mouth was the most genuine expression she'd ever seen. For once, he didn't seem to have any words at the ready so simply nodded his head before making his exit.</p><p>***</p><p>
  <i>The Winter Fox refused to give up. For three days in a row, he returned to the mountain at different times, trying to arrange another meeting.</i>
</p><p>
  <i>Once, he arrived so early that the sun was barely extending its rays into the sky, thin fingers of illumination curling over the mountain range in the distance. He walked further than he'd ever gone before, stumbling over the inhospitable terrain.</i>
</p><p>
  <i>The darkness felt too solid to belong just to the last vestiges of the night. He found himself creeping between outcroppings of rock, concealing himself in the thickest parts of the scrubby brush. Even still, it felt as if the darkness was watching him, waiting for the perfect moment to strike.</i>
</p><p>
  <i>A pair of eyes opened, surrounded by tendrils of blue lightning. The smell of ozone filled the air.</i>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Chapter 3</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Suddenly, the Winter Fox was snatched up by icy talons and the landscape rushed by him in a dizzying, disorientating wave.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Recognizable dialogue/actions are adapted from <i>The Flash</i> 3x22 "Infantino Street." ;)</p>
<p>Our journey concludes tomorrow!</p>
<p>If you read, I hope you enjoy! ♥</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <i>Suddenly, the Winter Fox was snatched up by icy talons and the landscape rushed by him in a dizzying, disorientating wave. In seconds, the land at the base of the mountain was looming beneath him.</i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>"Stay away," the Ice Dragon said in her frozen angel voice. "There are worse monsters than even myself here in the dark."</i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>Her tone was stern and her talons sharp but she placed him gently upon the ground before releasing him and taking to flight once more. A lone ray of sun crested the horizon, catching her in its radiance until she shone like pure crystal against the deep purple of the sky. </i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>Her brilliance hurt his eyes but still, he could not look away.</i>
</p>
<p>***</p>
<p>H.R. wasn't supposed to talk to her about Savitar but he was so naturally effusive, it wasn't hard to get him going on any subject she pointed him at.</p>
<p>Until one evening when he subbed in for Cisco at dinner and Frost was not-so-subtly prying for news of what all had gone on that day. He looked down, his expression more serious than any she'd ever seen on his usually cheerful mien.</p>
<p>"I can't keep telling you about Savitar," he said. "If I do, they're going to start sending somebody else down with the food. And I… I'd miss our chats."</p>
<p>He tried to give her one of his patented smiles but it didn't reach his eyes.</p>
<p>"All right, then," she said before she even had time to think it through. "We won't talk about Savitar."</p>
<p>The smile that declaration earned was still not 100% patented H.R. sunshine but it was much closer.</p>
<p>***</p>
<p>"Sorry, just a short 'Ice Dragon and Winter Fox' this time," he told her the next day as he arrived for lunch as usual. "Team Flash has-- um, stuff. But I promise, I'll make up for it. And the finale… whew! I may have to bring, you know, fireworks or something for that. Got to make the ending something special, after all."</p>
<p>Mentioning an end to the story caused a twinge to go through her. Did that mean he wasn't going to come down anymore once the story was concluded? Were they finally sending her away to a more permanent prison? The idea of never sharing a meal with H.R. again, never listening to him ramble in his enthusiastic manner, never seeing the way he smiled at her as if actually <i>happy</i> to be with her… It hurt more than she ever expected.</p>
<p>"Don't tell me, let me guess," she said, her tone icicle sharp. "The Dragon gets <i>fixed</i> so she's no longer icy and she leaves her mountain for good."</p>
<p>If he was caught off-guard by her sudden unfriendly demeanor, he didn't show it. "Nah, the Dragon's not broken," he scoffed.</p>
<p>She wasn't expecting that. "Well, what is she, then?"</p>
<p>"Thought it was obvious," he said around a mouthful of burger. "She's lonely. So's the Fox. That's what they have in common."</p>
<p>***</p>
<p>Something was <i>very</i> wrong. She tried to distract herself from her anxiety by reading the entirety of "The Ice Dragon and the Winter Fox" again but the characters she'd come to love felt anxious, too, as if concerned for their creator.</p>
<p>The moment she heard footsteps, she was on her feet, waiting at the door. H.R. came in, looking distraught.</p>
<p>"I just wanted to tell you," he started without preamble. "I left a note, so maybe they'll see, they'll understand that you don't belong in here."</p>
<p>"What? What are you talking about? Who'll understand?"</p>
<p>He paced back and forth. She had never seen him agitated like this before and the fine hair at the back of her neck prickled. "You're not Killer Frost anymore," he said. "Not the way you were, Caitlin."</p>
<p>"I'm not Caitlin," she growled.</p>
<p>"Maybe not Caitlin Snow," he agreed, "and not quite Killer Frost, so maybe… Caitlin Frost? And Caitlin Frost deserves a chance to have a life outside of a cell."</p>
<p>A chill went through her that had nothing to do with her powers. "What's going on here? Talk to me."</p>
<p>He stopped abruptly and looked at her, his expression a mix of grief and regret. "He fooled me. Savitar, that is. I thought it was Barry and I… I told him where Iris is."</p>
<p>"Well, that's understandable. Savitar looks just like Barry; he <i>is</i> Barry."</p>
<p>"No," he interrupted with an agitated twirl of his ever-present drumsticks. "I opened my big, fat mouth and now Iris is going to die... because... of... <i>me!</i>"</p>
<p>He slammed the drumsticks against the wall, punctuating his last three words.</p>
<p>Frost couldn't have been more shocked if he had started breathing fire. "You can't blame yourself for that," she said, trying to keep her tone even. "That could've happened to anybody."</p>
<p>When he looked at her, the sadness in his eyes caused an almost audible crack in her cold heart.</p>
<p>"Thanks," he said softly. "I appreciate it. I'm sorry I didn't get the chance to finish off the Dragon and Fox's tale properly. Just imagine whatever happy ending you would've liked."</p>
<p>She straightened up. "You can't try to take Savitar on," she said, her tone brittle. "You're not a metahuman. He'll kill you!"</p>
<p>He stepped closer and put his palm on the glass. "I've got to try to make this right," he said resolutely.</p>
<p>"No, don't go," she said, the words tumbling over each other in their haste to be said. "I need you… I mean, I need you not to go. Leave this to the rest of Team Flash, that's what they do."</p>
<p>Her accidental confession made a wry smile twist his mouth. He tapped his knuckles against the glass, then ran his hand along the brim of his hat in a patented H.R. style salute. "See you around, Caity Frost. I'm glad I got to know you."</p>
<p>"Wait. Wait, please!" She pounded her fists on the glass. He gave her one last look, as if trying to burn her image into his mind, then turned and walked away.</p>
<p>***</p>
<p>For a moment, Frost just stood there, stewing in a maelstrom of fear and frustration. She tried to call the cold but the meta dampener in the cell nulled her abilities. She beat on the glass again until her fists ached.</p>
<p><i>Think. You've got to think.</i> She paced the cell a few times, then paused. <i>I'm not Caitlin anymore but I still know everything she did.</i></p>
<p>Eobard Thawne had designed these cells. Cisco had discovered the backdoor he'd included to allow himself an escape if he'd ever been put in one himself. Cisco had closed that door but he'd built a different one for the same reason, should a villain infiltrate S.T.A.R. Labs and lock them in.</p>
<p>And Caitlin knew where Cisco had put that backdoor.</p>
<p>She counted back from the door a handful of panels, then up another handful and pulled back some of the padding there. "<i>Five by five,</i>" she muttered. "At least you're a consistent 'Buffy' nerd, Cisco."</p>
<p>Prying off an almost invisible panel, a tangle of wiring was exposed. Cisco had designed it to release the door if the wiring was shorted out in a precise pattern. It was low risk if done cautiously.</p>
<p>H.R. didn't have time for her to take the cautious approach, she could feel it in her bones.</p>
<p><i>Once the dampener's down, my healing will kick in,</i> she thought firmly and took a deep breath before shoving her hand straight into the live wires.</p>
<p>***</p>
<p>
  <i> Common sense told him to stay away but the Fox's heart bade him not to give up. He returned to the mountain top that afternoon but, though the sun was bright in the sky as he ascended, by the time he reached the peak, heavy storm clouds had rolled in. The sky churned and boiled ominously, the wind lashing angrily at his fur and threatening to throw him from the peak to the unforgiving ground far below.</i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>He clung to the earth with all of the might in his claws. As the thick clouds began extinguishing the light, he heard a sound like rock grinding against rock: a monstrous chuckle.</i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>Eyes opened a mere dozen paces away from him, close enough to see the blue lightning outlining the massive shape of the beast.</i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>"Fool," it whispered. "This mistake will be your last. You've delivered yourself to your own death."</i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>He was ripped away from his precarious hold and cast out into the darkness. As he fell, he heard an angelic choir scream.</i>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Chapter 4</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>"It's too late," the monster gloated. "You'll never be able to save him!"</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Recognizable dialogue/actions are adapted from The Flash 3x22 "Infantino Street" and 3x23 "Finish Line." ;)</p>
<p>If you read, I hope you enjoy! ♥♥♥</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <i>"It's too late," the monster gloated. "You'll never be able to save him!"</i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>The Ice Dragon blasted him with her cold fire, freezing him solid and then whirling to lash out with her tail. The monster shattered into a thousand shards even as she cast herself over the peak of the mountain.</i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>The Winter Fox was barely a speck, even to her impressive eyesight, tumbling in the tumultuous winds of the storm.</i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>Grimly, she tucked her wings back and dove, hoping desperately that she could reach him before he was dashed upon the ground. Hoping that her wings would be strong enough to save them both.</i>
</p>
<p><i>She streaked through the raging storm like an avenging angel blazing down from the heavens. Then, as she grew nearer, she opened her talons and</i> reached <i>with all her might.</i></p>
<p>***</p>
<p>Frost's entire left arm was still tingling as she scoured over the information in the Cortex. Fortunately, none of "Caitlin's" passwords and security clearances had been revoked, so she quickly gathered all of the information she could. </p>
<p><i>Infantino Street, it is,</i> she thought grimly and sprinted out of S.T.A.R. Labs, creating an ice slide to get her where she needed to be as quickly as possible.</p>
<p>As she approached, she immediately spotted Savitar with his hand clamped onto Iris's shoulder, facing off against Barry. Iris was… blurry?</p>
<p>In the split-second it took to put the pieces together, she created the largest icicle she could and fired it like a spear. Immediately bringing down the ice slide, she continued running on foot so she could focus more and more icy projectiles at Barry's murderous time remnant, not sure if they could penetrate through the suit's armor.</p>
<p>"I'm begging you--" Barry was saying as Iris spoke his name.</p>
<p>"You lose, Barry," Savitar spat out, a wicked sword blade extending from his forearm. But as he started to plunge it through Iris' torso, Frost's spear struck him, spinning him off-center.</p>
<p>Iris shouted as the tip of the blade still made impact but the rest of Frost's barrage drove Savitar back, reducing the damage.</p>
<p>Barry and Savitar both went into superspeeded motion, the former whisking Iris away as the later grabbed the oversized bazooka laying on the ground before disappearing. </p>
<p>"He stabbed me," Iris said, twisting fruitlessly to try and see the wound.</p>
<p>"We'll get you help, don't worry," Barry said. "I can see some blood but it's not a lot so--"</p>
<p>Frost had continued running, barely stopping before she crashed into the both of them.</p>
<p>"Hey," Iris said, sounding delighted and surprised. "You got out! How'd you--?"</p>
<p>"You're out of your mind," Frost muttered, grabbing her by the jacket and kissing her passionately.</p>
<p>"Um?" Barry said, looking around in confusion.</p>
<p>"Savitar took the Speed Force bazooka," Joe West informed them as he arrived, then he did a double-take. "Um? What?"</p>
<p>Frost leaned back in order to mutter, "Turn off the face-mogrifer thing, would you?"</p>
<p>"Oh, that's right. I forgot." With a flourish, "Iris" brandished the small device and H.R. bloomed through the image before it vanished.</p>
<p>"Barry!" Iris, the actual one, came running around Joe to fly into Barry's arms. </p>
<p>"Um, Speed Force bazooka?" Joe repeated and Barry nodded.</p>
<p>"I've got to stop him," he said, giving Iris a final kiss before speeding away.</p>
<p>"You've <i>got</i> to tell me how you got here," H.R. said, "but you probably should, you know, go help Barry stop Savitar first."</p>
<p>There was a moment, a crystal clear moment, when she almost said no. And then she looked at H.R., looked at the blood on his clothes from where Savitar had stabbed him, and her heart both hardened and lightened at the same time.</p>
<p>"Go to the hospital and get that wound treated," she said firmly.</p>
<p>"Yes, ma'am," he said with a bit of a salute and then winced as the motion pulled on his injury. But as she turned away, he brought her back towards him and kissed her, muttering, "For luck."</p>
<p>"I make my own luck," she said but could hear the besotted tone in her voice, totally canceling out any badassery she had been going for.</p>
<p>It didn't matter. She created her ice slide and followed Barry. Despite the situation, she found she was smiling.</p>
<p>***</p>
<p>Frost peered around the tree, watching the group of her former friends. Barry and Iris were shaking out a huge blanket, Cisco and Gypsy were wrangling a large wicker basket and soon food was being passed out by Wally, Julian, Joe and Henry Allen.</p>
<p><i>An actual, old-timey picnic,</i> she thought, intending for derision. Instead, there was clear longing in the words. But how could she belong with them anymore, no matter how well things had been left with Team Flash after she aided in stopping Savitar? The Caitlin Snow they had known was long gone, buried far, far beneath the frost and ice, and nothing could ever bring her back again.</p>
<p>"There you are!"</p>
<p>She was nigh-on tackle-hugged by H.R., who proceeded to kiss the breath out of her before picking her up and spinning her around. She pulled back enough to say, "Careful, you'll bust your stitches!"</p>
<p>His smile put the sun to shame. "Nah," he said, "but even if I did, it'd be worth it. Don't worry, I can still type plenty fine with just one hand. I won't let you miss the next installment of 'Ice Dragon and Winter Fox.'"</p>
<p>"You know, it seems to me that I was promised fireworks and such for the ending," she teased.</p>
<p>"Oh, I've got something particular in mind," he said. "I hope you'll like it."</p>
<p>"Somehow, I bet I will," she said and kissed him once more, just because she was somehow lucky enough that she <i>could</i>.</p>
<p>Cisco and Barry awkwardly approached.</p>
<p>"Thanks for coming," Cisco said.</p>
<p>"We're glad you're here, uh, Killer Frost," Barry added, stumbling over his words a little.</p>
<p>"Not Killer Frost, anymore," she said, adding before either could speak, "and not Caitlin Snow, either."</p>
<p>"Then who?" Cisco asked.</p>
<p>She looked at H.R. who tightened his arm around her marginally. "Call me Caity Frost," she said.</p>
<p>***</p>
<p>
  <i>The Ice Dragon gently put the Winter Fox down at the base of the mountain and used her wings to shelter him until the storm passed. Once the sun began poking curious fingers through the dissipating clouds, she took a step back and looked at him.</i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>"You're an idiot," she said, her tone stern but her icy blue eyes had a suspiciously wet gleam. "I told you to stay away. You could've gotten killed!"</i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>"But I didn't," he said.</i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>"But you could have!"</i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>"But… I didn't."</i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>The Ice Dragon sighed, her breath a plume of mist spiraling into the sky. "Well," she finally said. "I don't know what you expect now. There's no such thing as a 'Happily Ever After' for the likes of me."</i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>"Eh," the Fox demurred. "I'd much rather have a 'Happily Ever Meanwhile.' Who needs an ending when the adventures can just go on and on?"</i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>He sat, looking infuriatingly unfazed by the danger he had just escaped.</i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>"What I'd really like is to fly," he went on. "You know, actual flying, not the whole… almost falling to my death thing. What do you say, Lady Dragon? Will you introduce me to your sky?"</i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>She tilted her head, studying him as the sun once more bathed her scales in brilliance. "Very well," she said quietly. "Happily Ever Meanwhile, it is."</i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>She flared her wings, carefully picking him up in her shimmering claws, and launched them both into the air. The horizon stretched out in front of them, an endless expanse of forever that neither of them would ever again have to face alone.</i>
</p>
<p>
  
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Fun fact: If you've hung out with me on <a href="https://ageless-aislynn.tumblr.com/">my Tumblr</a> for long enough, you might've recognized this story's original title from a while back when this was just a one-shot: "Happily Ever Meanwhile." ;) ♥♥♥</p>
        </blockquote><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Now with an epilogue over in <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29877195/chapters/75738986">Chapter 42</a> of the final fic in this prompt set, titled (naturally ;) ) "Epilogue." ♥♥♥</p></blockquote></div></div>
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